Wow... just have to vent (no pun intended). Sorry for the long message. After 4 months obsessing on which (and whether) to get a pellet grill I decided on a Camp Chef SmokePro SG24. All I have ever had was a small propane grill. Received it on Monday and it's been hell ever since. First 2 issues are minor but the 3rd was a killer.
First Problem: Grill had a missed paint spot because a piece of metal wire was “stuck” to it when manufactured and painted. Took it off because it was sticking out and was sharp and pointy and it was bare metal underneath. Response from CC was to buy some grill paint ($6 at Home Depot) and spray it which I did. They are sending me a HAT for my inconvenience.
Next Problem: Following day got a bottom shelf from them and it had no hardware. They said they would ship them to me but it’s going to take a week from Utah to me here in Florida. Again back to Home Depot for $2 worth of screws. Again, no big deal, just inconvenience.
The absolute worst problem was today, Sunday: Got grill assembled Tuesday. First test was, I think, Wednesday. I lose track of days since I retired.
Cooked a splatchcocked chicken from Trader Joes. Came out pretty good for my first try. Second test was the next day. Made a burger to see how the high temp cooking worked. Came out ok but I overcooked it a bit. I'll learn.
So now I am going to invite friends for ribs on Sunday as my first rib test. They will be guinea pigs. Friday night bought 5 racks of baby back ribs ($65 on sale) and prepped them for my first 3-2-1 cook. Go out at noon today, turn on grill. TOTALLY DEAD. NO POWER, NO LIGHTS. NADA, NOTHING. Being an electronics "pro" I checked the outlet which is fine because I installed it plus I plugged in a fan and it worked. Checked the fuse, it’s fine. Check power at the switch on the component side of the controller board, it’s getting power to the board through the switch and is fine. Tried reset by holding button for 10 seconds. No go. Everything is fine except IT IS DEAD. NO LIGHTS, NO AUGER, NO FAN MOTOR NO NOTHING. BOY AM I PISSED! Now I have to deal with 5 racks of ribs I will have to give away or throw away and cancel dinner and likely have to wait another week to get the replacement part (IMO it has to be the controller board but I am sure they will know).
One would think that since they are a BBQ company they would have tech support on the weekends like Weber (yea, I know they are much smaller but still, most problems occur on weekends!). I'm only hoping they can overnight me any part I need because Fedex Ground is 5-6 days to me. If I get it by Tues I may be able to save the ribs. Can't refreeze them because they were frozen to start.
In the interim can anyone think of anything obvious that I may have missed? I didn't see any internal fuse on the circuit board. Are these controllers that subject to failure?
Thanks for listening.
First Problem: Grill had a missed paint spot because a piece of metal wire was “stuck” to it when manufactured and painted. Took it off because it was sticking out and was sharp and pointy and it was bare metal underneath. Response from CC was to buy some grill paint ($6 at Home Depot) and spray it which I did. They are sending me a HAT for my inconvenience.
Next Problem: Following day got a bottom shelf from them and it had no hardware. They said they would ship them to me but it’s going to take a week from Utah to me here in Florida. Again back to Home Depot for $2 worth of screws. Again, no big deal, just inconvenience.
The absolute worst problem was today, Sunday: Got grill assembled Tuesday. First test was, I think, Wednesday. I lose track of days since I retired.
Cooked a splatchcocked chicken from Trader Joes. Came out pretty good for my first try. Second test was the next day. Made a burger to see how the high temp cooking worked. Came out ok but I overcooked it a bit. I'll learn.So now I am going to invite friends for ribs on Sunday as my first rib test. They will be guinea pigs. Friday night bought 5 racks of baby back ribs ($65 on sale) and prepped them for my first 3-2-1 cook. Go out at noon today, turn on grill. TOTALLY DEAD. NO POWER, NO LIGHTS. NADA, NOTHING. Being an electronics "pro" I checked the outlet which is fine because I installed it plus I plugged in a fan and it worked
. Checked the fuse, it’s fine. Check power at the switch on the component side of the controller board, it’s getting power to the board through the switch and is fine. Tried reset by holding button for 10 seconds. No go. Everything is fine except IT IS DEAD. NO LIGHTS, NO AUGER, NO FAN MOTOR NO NOTHING. BOY AM I PISSED! Now I have to deal with 5 racks of ribs I will have to give away or throw away and cancel dinner and likely have to wait another week to get the replacement part (IMO it has to be the controller board but I am sure they will know).One would think that since they are a BBQ company they would have tech support on the weekends like Weber (yea, I know they are much smaller but still, most problems occur on weekends!). I'm only hoping they can overnight me any part I need because Fedex Ground is 5-6 days to me. If I get it by Tues I may be able to save the ribs. Can't refreeze them because they were frozen to start.
In the interim can anyone think of anything obvious that I may have missed? I didn't see any internal fuse on the circuit board. Are these controllers that subject to failure?
Thanks for listening.
